The Liverpool captain, Steven Gerrard, punched a man in a bar with the style and speed of a professional boxer during a row over music, a court heard today.

The England international allegedly "totally lost it" and launched an attack on Marcus McGee, a 34-year-old businessman, after the victim refused to hand over control of a CD player to the footballer, a jury at Liverpool crown court heard.

The court heard that the 29-year-old midfielder was with friends at the Lounge Inn in Southport, Merseyside, in the early hours of December 29, following his team's 5-1 trouncing of Newcastle, when he clashed with McGee, who was with another group.

The attack was captured on the bar's CCTV. Gerrard denies affray.

David Turner QC, prosecuting, said Gerrard asked McGee for a card controlling the CD player, by saying: "Here y'are lad. Give me that lad." But McGee objected to his attitude and the expression 'lad'.

Turner said: "Not many people on Merseyside, or indeed anywhere else would refuse a request from Steven Gerrard, but Mr McGee did.

"There can be no doubt that this refusal astounded Steven Gerrard. He walked away back to his party, but the CCTV evidence shows how much his mood had changed. He was no longer the centre of that high-spirited party.

"He was clearly walking round, pondering, musing over what had happened, about the man who said no to Steven Gerrard."

The prosecution say that six minutes later, he returned to the bar, approached McGee who was sitting alone at the bar and confronted him with the words: "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

"Steven Gerrard had clearly lost his cool – he was very angry with Marcus McGee."

One of Gerrard's friends. John Doran, pushed McGee away and elbowed him in the face. The prosecution claims Gerrard then "totally lost it".

"Almost immediately after the blow from John Doran, in fact within seconds, Steven Gerrard joined in the attack with a succession of well-aimed uppercut punches, delivered with the style and speed of a professional boxer, rather than professional footballer."

Ian Smith, another member of Gerrard's party, joined in. Doran and Smith then kicked McGee.

Gerrard was pulled away from the fight by the bar manager and was restrained. McGee was seen with his face bleeding, as he sat at the bar with his girlfriend. The prosecution says the violent incident "must have been very frightening to those ordinary members of the public present in the Lounge Inn that night".

Turner described Gerrard as a word class footballer who is "a star". He added: "Wherever you go in Liverpool and indeed the world, there are little boys proudly wearing the Liverpool shirt with No 8 and the name Gerrard on the back of it.

"The prosecution do not claim Gerrard is normally an arrogant man or that he is a bully. But what we say is that, that night he just lost his self control and joined in an attack which should never have taken place. He let himself down."

When interviewed by the police later that night, Gerrard agreed there had been an exchange of words concerning the music but said Marcus McGee had been aggressive.

He said he had no intention of having a fight but when McGee stood up and they started arguing, he believed that McGee was about to hit him so he punched him on the side of the head. He thought he had struck the first blow in the fight and hadn't been aware of his friend striking him with his elbow.

Turner told the jurors it may be a case where CCTV evidence is crucial and possibly more use in deciding what happened rather than the recollection of witnesses.

"On this occasion, Steven Gerrard's fists, not his feet, did the talking. This was never self-defence in 100 years."